Why our Olive Trees have passports
Why our Olive Trees have Passports
Who are the Animal and Plant Health Agency/ APHA
APHA is an Executive Agency of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, otherwise known as DEFRA. The responsibility of APHA in the Horticultural world is to safeguard plant health for the benefit of the people, the environment and the economy. The Agency was formed in October 2014, basically merging two former agencies Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) with parts of the Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA) responsible for plant and bee health to create a single agency responsible for animal, plant and bee health. Their overall responsibilities are- identifying and controlling endemic and exotic diseases and pests in animals, plants and bees, and surveillance of new and emerging pests and diseases
- scientific research in areas such as bacterial, viral, prion and parasitic diseases and vaccines, and food safety; and act as an international reference laboratory for many farm animal diseases
- facilitating international trade in animals, products of animal origin, and plants
- protecting endangered wildlife through licensing and registration
- managing a programme of apiary (bee) inspections, diagnostics, research and development, and training and advice
- regulating the safe disposal of animal by-products to reduce the risk of potentially dangerous substances entering the food chain
The Risk Plants pose to the United Kingdom.
Because of the risk of disease and pests posed by different Plant Genus, APHA have categorised the plants into High, Medium and Low Risk. Here is a link to their website for the various plant categories. All plants brought into the United Kingdom need to be inspected by APHA. This currently takes place at the Nursery but will soon take place at the ports at special control points. Rest assured, the high risk of Olives means they are thoroughly checked by experts in both Europe and the UK.Why are Olive trees Restricted and why our Olive trees have passports
Although Xylella has not been detected in the United Kingdom, Xylella has been linked to Olive trees grown throughout the Mediterranean.Xylella is a bacterium which restricts the flow of water and nutrients in specific plants (olive trees being one of them).
This can unfortunately lead to the eventual death of the infected plant.
Xylella is transmitted from tree to tree by insects, mostly Spittle bugs (Froghoppers) which live in nearby vegetation.
Some experts are of the opinion that far from being a recent disease, Xyella has been around for centuries and manifestations have been attributed to other factors.
However, an outbreak occurred in Southern Italy in 2013 and made international headlines due to the Italian government’s slow reaction.
The infected zone in Puglia has since been quarantined so no trees can be transported from that region.
The question of whether Olive Trees need inspection was actually raised in Parliament. Here is a link to the Parliamentary questions page: link Because of the seriousness of the disease, The Animal and Plant Health Agency/APHA have restricted imports and only allow Trees from nurseries that carry a plant passport.Xylella Symptoms
Although symptoms can remain hidden for a number of years, one of the symptoms of Xylella is brown necrotic Lesions appearing on the foliage.Why our Olive Trees have Passports
A Plant Passport ensures the Nurseries have the necessary inspection processes and qualified staff in place to control the potential for disease. To be issued a plant passport the site needs to have regular inspections which enable them to be classed as a disease free zone. See our guidance page for further details as to how we qualify to be Plant Passport Holders. If Xylella is detected in an outbreak situation, all hosts within 100 metres must be destroyed and the area treated to control the vectors. There will also be measures placed on businesses trading in host plants within 5km.Government Guidance
The Government have issued guidance in relation to the import of Olives. Here is a link.Our Plant Passport Details.
When you receive your tree, you will see a small tag from our Nursery with our Plant Passport Identification details. The tag will look something like the above.
You will also see a tamper proof tag which details the safe region in Europe the tree was grown in.
Rest assured, the tags confirm the tree is disease free and have been inspected by both Defra/APHA and the European Inspectorate.